U.S. / county disease rankings
Counties with the highest premature death rates (U.S.)
Among 3,088 U.S. counties with published values, the counties with the highest premature death rates are Buffalo County, SD (46,417.9, 4.72 times the U.S. county median of 9,824.9), Dewey County, SD (41,916.3, 4.27 times the U.S. county median of 9,824.9) and Oglala Lakota County, SD (40,417.3, 4.11 times the U.S. county median of 9,824.9). Values are years of life lost before 75 per 100,000.
Source: County Health Rankings, built from CDC National Vital Statistics System death records. These are county-level figures, compared with the U.S. county median. A high rate does not prove an environmental cause: age, smoking, income, access to care, screening and chance all move county rates, and small counties swing widely.
Top 50 U.S. counties
Premature death, years of life lost before 75 per 100,000. Showing 50 of 3,088 counties with published values.
| Rank | County | State | Value | U.S. county median | Times reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buffalo County | SD | 46,417.9 | 9,824.9 | 4.72x |
| 2 | Dewey County | SD | 41,916.3 | 9,824.9 | 4.27x |
| 3 | Oglala Lakota County | SD | 40,417.3 | 9,824.9 | 4.11x |
| 4 | Corson County | SD | 37,698.5 | 9,824.9 | 3.84x |
| 5 | Sioux County | ND | 35,129.3 | 9,824.9 | 3.58x |
| 6 | Benson County | ND | 35,011.3 | 9,824.9 | 3.56x |
| 7 | Todd County | SD | 34,849.5 | 9,824.9 | 3.55x |
| 8 | Mellette County | SD | 32,895.5 | 9,824.9 | 3.35x |
| 9 | Roosevelt County | MT | 32,695.5 | 9,824.9 | 3.33x |
| 10 | Menominee County | WI | 27,936.5 | 9,824.9 | 2.84x |
| 11 | Apache County | AZ | 27,851.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.83x |
| 12 | Alpine County | CA | 27,650.3 | 9,824.9 | 2.81x |
| 13 | Kingman County | KS | 27,595.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.81x |
| 14 | McKinley County | NM | 27,592.8 | 9,824.9 | 2.81x |
| 15 | Thurston County | NE | 27,025.9 | 9,824.9 | 2.75x |
| 16 | Big Horn County | MT | 25,708.7 | 9,824.9 | 2.62x |
| 17 | Edwards County | KS | 25,238.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.57x |
| 18 | Ziebach County | SD | 25,117.9 | 9,824.9 | 2.56x |
| 19 | Kusilvak Census Area | AK | 24,556.3 | 9,824.9 | 2.5x |
| 20 | Jackson County | SD | 24,380.1 | 9,824.9 | 2.48x |
| 21 | Rosebud County | MT | 24,379.9 | 9,824.9 | 2.48x |
| 22 | Petersburg city | VA | 24,086.5 | 9,824.9 | 2.45x |
| 23 | McDowell County | WV | 24,029 | 9,824.9 | 2.45x |
| 24 | Owsley County | KY | 23,920.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.43x |
| 25 | La Paz County | AZ | 23,645.2 | 9,824.9 | 2.41x |
| 26 | Coahoma County | MS | 22,826.1 | 9,824.9 | 2.32x |
| 27 | Miller County | GA | 22,798.7 | 9,824.9 | 2.32x |
| 28 | Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area | AK | 22,703.6 | 9,824.9 | 2.31x |
| 29 | Rolette County | ND | 22,508.3 | 9,824.9 | 2.29x |
| 30 | Mingo County | WV | 22,436.8 | 9,824.9 | 2.28x |
| 31 | Pemiscot County | MO | 22,326 | 9,824.9 | 2.27x |
| 32 | Holmes County | MS | 22,286.3 | 9,824.9 | 2.27x |
| 33 | Wolfe County | KY | 22,193.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.26x |
| 34 | Logan County | WV | 22,019.5 | 9,824.9 | 2.24x |
| 35 | Glacier County | MT | 21,840.2 | 9,824.9 | 2.22x |
| 36 | Stonewall County | TX | 21,829.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.22x |
| 37 | Navajo County | AZ | 21,728.2 | 9,824.9 | 2.21x |
| 38 | Norton city | VA | 21,701.1 | 9,824.9 | 2.21x |
| 39 | Bennett County | SD | 21,695.4 | 9,824.9 | 2.21x |
| 40 | Sharkey County | MS | 21,606.1 | 9,824.9 | 2.2x |
| 41 | Humphreys County | MS | 21,431.3 | 9,824.9 | 2.18x |
| 42 | Leflore County | MS | 21,369.2 | 9,824.9 | 2.18x |
| 43 | Perry County | KY | 21,360.1 | 9,824.9 | 2.17x |
| 44 | Rio Arriba County | NM | 21,299.5 | 9,824.9 | 2.17x |
| 45 | Emporia city | VA | 21,097.6 | 9,824.9 | 2.15x |
| 46 | Tunica County | MS | 21,013.3 | 9,824.9 | 2.14x |
| 47 | Dillingham Census Area | AK | 20,903.7 | 9,824.9 | 2.13x |
| 48 | Knott County | KY | 20,880.8 | 9,824.9 | 2.13x |
| 49 | Lyman County | SD | 20,853.5 | 9,824.9 | 2.12x |
| 50 | Neshoba County | MS | 20,814.9 | 9,824.9 | 2.12x |